Friends? (tododeku)

Chapter 1

Third-person POV

"No Shouto! Come back!" there was a shout and then a loud bang.

A white door slammed shut and a little boy ran out. The air was cool.  Autumn was coming. The orange and reddish leaves had covered the previously green lawn. The sky was gray and ready for the snow to come.

The colorful leaves rattled under the boy's red sneakers, which left behind tiny little footprints. The boy's breathing was quick and his hands swished faster and faster.

The forest in front of him came closer and the boy disappeared among the great trees and shrubs. He jumped over a stump and almost fell, but was able to maintain his balance. He ran past trees, hard and scratching branches whipping his face. The boy still didn't stop. He couldn't stop. He had to get out, deeper into the woods, far from the sounds behind. He ran and ran. He jumped through a bush and grimaced as a branch scratched his arm. He just went deeper and deeper.

"Shouto!" Dozens of birds took off in fright. That shout seemed to shake the whole forest, he almost felt the vibration of the ground. The little boy gasped in fright and only ran faster. He was tired and gasping for the lack of oxygen. He tasted blood and it felt like his flanks were on fire as if to force the boy to stop. His body would not last any longer.

The boy glanced behind him and as his concentration waned, he stumbled over a thick root and flew in a large arc to the muddy path. The boy gasped in pain and raised his head from the dusty ground. His face was scratched and covered in dirt. His hands trembled and breathing scattered.

He glanced around him and breathed heavily. Not a soul. He listened quietly for a moment. Nothing.

He was safe.

The boy got up and took a couple of shaky steps toward an adjacent tree. He began wiping his dusty clothes. He touched his dirty face and grimaced. The wounds were still fresh. The boy slowly raised his hand closer to his face. He closed his eyes and tiny little ice crystals began to spray like steam from the boy's palm. He directed them over his wounds and let the cool mist do his job. The boy opened his eyes and did the same to his arms. "Haah..." the boy sighed at the end of the treatment and descended to the ground.

The boy looked up towards the tops of the trees. The trees covered the sky and brought darkness to the forest. He had a thin t-shirt and shorts that had changed from light blue to stale gray. He was cold and hungry. Maybe if he played and ran around for a bit, he could get warmer. And that's what he decided to do. He grabbed stones and threw them around. He found leaves and tried to gather them into multiple big piles. Then he kicked them. Kicked them as hard as he could. The leaves flew around, some higher than others. After blowing off some steam, the boy felt warm and could now look around. He liked the forest. It was quiet and peaceful. He liked animals too; rabbits, squirrels that climbed on trees, and even bears but hoped that he would never meet one. After exploring his surroundings he found a big stone. It was tall, way taller than him. He wanted to climb on it. He wanted to know how adults felt when they were this tall. So he started climbing. And when he got to the top he sat down, enjoying the view.

Suddenly he heard a sound. It sounded like rustling leaves. He turned his head and saw a large bush next to him. It was nearly as high as the rock and really thick too. You couldn't see through it. "Hello?" he whispered. Maybe it was an animal. It was quiet. "Is someone there?" the boy said, a little louder this time. He felt a little afraid but tried to sound as brave as possible. Then he saw green hair popping out through the leaves. It was hard to see because it was nearly the same color as the bush. But it looked soft. Maybe there was another boy. Maybe they could play together. "Hey, come out," he begged, "we can play together if you want to." The bush rustled again and the locks of green hair disappeared. He ran away. "Hey wait!" the boy stood up and ran to the bush. He hopped down from the rock. He looked under leaves and tried to search behind the bush. But nothing. Whatever it was, a boy or some kind of animal, he got away. "Oh man," the boy pouted and kicked a tiny rock that got in his way.

----

"Shouto!"

The boy stood in front of his house and behind the door was his sister. His clothes were a mess, dirty and muddy. His knee was bleeding.

"Where have you been?" the boy's sister Fuyumi exclaimed. She had white hair with a hint of red. Her eyes were damp behind her glasses. She looked tired and worried.

"Fuyumi..." the boy said while avoiding eye contact.

"What happened?" Fuyumi said and took the little boy in a tight hug.

"First you ran away from home and now you're all messy and hurt," Fuyumi sighed and let go.

"I'm sorry. But it doesn't hurt," the boy said in and brushed his knee.

"You are crazy," Fuyumi thought out loud and turned around. "Go to sleep, you're tired."

The boy nodded in response and went to his room. He decided to walk to his window. It was already dark outside. He got up on the wide windowsill and pulled his knees against his chest. The trees swayed gently in the wind and the sky was clear and full of stars. It's beautiful. The boy pressed his little palm against the cold glass and sighed. He hoped to be a bird or a rabbit. He could even be a dandelion. Why a human? Humans have too many responsibilities. He leaned his head against the wall behind him and watched the nature move outside. Tomorrow everything will be better. He closed his eyes and tried to remember the green hair he had seen.

Who was that mysterious person? I want to meet them.

Then he fell asleep.

And that's how our hero's, Shouto Todoroki's, impassioned story began.